This invention relates generally to commercial trash compactors of the type usually found in apartment buildings. More particularly, this invention relates to trash compactors that allow a trash bin to be loaded and then uses a ram to compact the trash within the trash bin.
Collecting and transporting trash from urban areas has become a major industry throughout the civilized world. Because trash must be transported from urban areas to areas where it can be left in landfills or otherwise disposed of, an important function in transporting trash is to first compact it so as to reduce the volume required to transport a given weight of waste material. Trash compactors have been utilized in trash transfer stations where trash is brought by vehicles that collect it in urban areas and reprocessed and placed on larger vehicles for long haul transportation to remote landfills or other disposal locations.
This invention relates to a solid waste trash separation system for use in tall buildings to permit the tenants to dispose of their recyclable materials so that they are separated into various bulk receptacles in the building's basement, when the trash is placed into a trash chute located on each floor. The tenant controls the trash system which permits the trash to be delivered into different containers depending upon the type of trash.
State and local governments require that trash be separated and certain portions recycled when it is disposed of, e.g., paper, comingled recyclable materials and unrecyclable materials. If a tenant disposes of all trash into a single, typical trash chute found in many apartment buildings, that trash empties into a single basement trash dumpster and must then be separated by building management, an often time-consuming and unpleasant task.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,551,576 (Importico) addressed this issue by disclosing a system to separate and store trash which has been segregated into various categories for use in a multi-floor building. The system has a vertical waste chute with at least one access door to the chute located at each floor of the building. The chute has an upper and lower portion and two paths therethrough. The first path permits vertical disposal of the trash and the second path is angled to the first to permit designated trash to follow a different pathway for disposal. The system further includes a diverter located adjacent to the lower portion of the chute for diverting the path of the trash placed into the chute from a first location containing a plurality of trash receptacles located on a platform to a second location having at least one trash receptacle, such as a trash compactor. The system also includes a receptacle mover to move a selected trash receptacle beneath the chute to receive a particular category of trash deposited into the chute. A controller controls the receptacle mover and includes a selector to select the particular category of trash to be deposited into the access door and an indicator to indicate the category selected. The selector and indicator are located adjacent to each access door. The controller is operatively connected to the receptacle mover to selectively control the receptacle mover.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,588,330 (Importico) discloses a top loading trash compactor for compacting trash in a container, including a packing head that is preferably generally pie-shaped in cross section, rotatably mounted to a frame about the apex of the pie-shape. A power unit is provided for providing power to rotate the packing head, via a driver, from a first position to a second position, the first position allowing trash to enter the container and the second position causing the trash to be compacted within the container. The frame holds the apex of the packing head above the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,031,829 (Shantzis) shows a system which uses a single chute in a multi-story building to collect into separate receptacles, different categories of wastes already separated by the tenant for recycling. A turntable carries a large receptacle for each category of waste. Control means on each floor enable a tenant to operate the turntable to position a selected receptacle beneath the turntable to receive a particular category of waste. A microprocessor controller and interlocks on the access doors prevent conflicts between floors.
Additionally, in suburban areas, typically for private homes, a system by, for example, Recycle Bank of Philadelphia, Pa. supplies a recycling bin to each individual house. Each recycle bin is addressed with a bar code or RFID tag attached to it. The household customer places all of their combined recyclables (of all categories) into this one bin. The bin is then picked up and dumped by a recycling truck. The truck is equipped with a scale that weighs the material. The bar code of the bin is then scanned and the weight of that bin is recorded. The weight of recyclable material that the household accumulates is stored and then transferred into “recycling dollars.” These recycling dollars are redeemed by the household on the bank website for store coupons.
Accordingly, a need exists for a recycling trash system that awards customers for recycling at multi-floor buildings, not houses. A difficulty to this point has been that, recycle bins have been, for the most part, located on each floor of the multi-floor buildings. If the bins are located in, for example, stair hallways, this may present a cleanliness or health problem and a fire hazard.
All references cited herein are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.